Eastern Screech-Owl
Megascops asio
Live from the dock
Active 42 minutes across 8 days since August 2026. Last heard on August 30.
In our recordsHear the call
When you'll hear it
Most often heard overnight, after dark. Quiet around midday.
Minutes active by hour, as a table
| 12 AM | 1 AM | 2 AM | 3 AM | 4 AM | 5 AM | 6 AM | 7 AM | 8 AM | 9 AM | 10 AM | 11 AM | NOON | 1 PM | 2 PM | 3 PM | 4 PM | 5 PM | 6 PM | 7 PM | 8 PM | 9 PM | 10 PM | 11 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minutes active | 1 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
Across the year
Present from early-August through August. First heard this year on August 12.
Dock records
- First heard
- August 12, 2026
- Busiest day
- 11 minutes on August 18, 2026
- Earliest call
- 12:41 a.m.
- Days detected
- 8 of 183 days monitored
What our dock mics have heard
We've only got the Eastern Screech-Owl on 8 of the 183 days we've been listening, so there isn't enough yet to say much about seasons or trends. Here's every day it turned up:
- August 12, 2026: 9 minutes active, first call at 1:15 a.m.
- August 14, 2026: 5 minutes active, first call at 2:53 a.m.
- August 18, 2026: 11 minutes active, first call at 1:21 a.m.
- August 23, 2026: 3 minutes active, first call at 3:38 a.m.
- August 24, 2026: 4 minutes active, first call at 12:41 a.m.
- August 25, 2026: 6 minutes active, first call at 2:53 a.m.
- August 26, 2026: 2 minutes active, first call at 6:19 a.m.
- August 30, 2026: 2 minutes active, first call at 1:16 a.m.
It's gone quiet. Nothing since August 30, 2026, 72 days ago. Next time we hear one it'll get added here.
Heard alongside
These are the birds we hear most in the same hours as the Eastern Screech-Owl. An hour counts as shared when the mics pick up both in it, and we pick the list by how much their hours overlap.
- Ruby-throated Hummingbird: 5 of those 21 hours.
- Great Blue Heron: 4 of those 21 hours.
- Cedar Waxwing: 4 of those 21 hours.
- Brown Thrasher: 3 of those 21 hours.
- American Goldfinch: 2 of those 21 hours.
Common questions
What time of day do you hear a Eastern Screech-Owl at Watts Bar Lake?
Most often heard overnight, after dark. Quiet around midday. These are the hours the dock microphones detect the Eastern Screech-Owl most often.
What time of year is the Eastern Screech-Owl at Watts Bar Lake?
Present from early-August through August. First heard this year on August 12. That window is when the Eastern Screech-Owl has been audible from the Watts Bar Lake dock.
Has the Eastern Screech-Owl been heard at Watts Bar Lake?
Yes. Active 42 minutes across 8 days since August 2026. Last heard on August 30.
About the bird
The eastern screech owl or eastern screech-owl is a stocky, short-tailed owl that is relatively common in Eastern North America, from Mexico to Canada. Mid-sized for a screech owl, the species resides in most types of woodland habitats across its range and is relatively adaptable to urban and developed areas compared to other owls.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 Read more on Wikipedia →
